Of Incomplete Stories Regarding SPIDER-MAN and THE HOBBIT

Hey folks, Harry here with a story that Deadline's Michael Fleming is running.
Regarding a whole host of young actors reportedly up for SPIDER-MAN and how SONY is reviewing screen tests anxious to make a decision... probably because they'd like to announce their new Peter Parker at Comic Con I'd imagine. Click on the link to read the whole story, but this isn't the type of story that Fleming used to really run at Variety... and I know of at least one, EXTREMELY HIGH PROFILE STORY - that another editor posted on this site that originated with Fleming that is filled with reading into what he perceives is going on. Regarding THE HOBBIT.
Just because producers are meeting with actors, doesn't mean they're making final offers. There are other possibilities. Like, keeping the momentum of production on path so that the film makes its 2012 date.
Since joining Nikki Finke - it seems Fleming has decided to go a bit rogue, putting an emphasis on "first". It is funny, that's kind of how I started out too when I became an Internet Scooper. But now, often times I find myself with direct access to folks and well... at least on that project all I can say is... things are completely unresolved at this juncture - and yet the production must continue to move forward.
Who will ultimately be directing, instead of a guessing game, why not wait till people are really making the deal to do it. IF things were as far along as Michael said... Why hasn't there been an official reaction? Because... there's still a lot to be worked out. Some of the same reasons Guillermo left. These issues are no doubt numerous, complex and unwieldy.
I bring this up in a SPIDER-MAN article because I find myself wondering how solid this SPIDER-MAN story is. He seems to be doubtful of screen tests even existing for some of the candidates on his list. So did SONY watch screen tests of all those names or not? And were there others watched before that day or more the next day? How many screen tests are shot and reviewed on a film like this? I'm betting a ton.
But at least with this SPIDER-MAN story - I believe that SONY would have it pared down to a few at this point out of the desire to deliver the biggest splash with an announcement either right before COMIC CON or during.
It is definitely fun to wonder about these mysterious studio deliberations. It is fun to publicly speculate and wonder aloud. But then, I thought that's what disqualified me from being an official journalist... so I guess Michael Fleming is no different than the rest of us now. Getting pieces that don't quite fit and speculating publicly about them out of fear of being beat to the scoop. I guess, I shouldn't be upset at Fleming's fill in the blanks approach to Journalism now. After all it is the way of things these days.
I just liked it when there was a bigger difference between those on the net, and the sort of writers that come from places like Variety & Hollywood Reporter. When you read from those guys and girls it used to really be rock solid. Now, even the old guard have turned the Film Business into a pure spectator sport... without all the facts. Essentially becoming like Talk Radio, Network News and the Blogosphere.
Are there any real soldiers of print anymore? That call the direct people involved and can have an honest conversation where one would realize that the story isn't ready to print yet. Maybe it was Peter Bart that stood over Fleming's stories saying "You haven't got it yet!" ala Jason Robards' Ben Bradlee in ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN. "Get someone on the record!"
Both this SPIDER-MAN story and THE HOBBIT story don't have a single source. I reached out. And I'm waiting till I can get the story on the record.
The only quote that I'll attribute to my source, whom I'll call "DEREK", when I asked if he was directing, "No, nothing has really changed - I've always said that me directing was one option, and so that's not really news. The studio are working out what that deal would look like, because how else do they know if it's a viable option? But it's honestly one of several different options - many irons are in the fire right now. What's of great concern to everyone right now is trying to stay on schedule and not slip back another year, because we will start losing people - and that's increasingly difficult as each day passes. A lot of people - both film makers and studios are working very hard right now, trying to get a positive outcome here."

depends. We break stories when we get them confirmed. As a result, those breaks are fewer. But for example on this story, that end quote comes from the highest power of this project, which is nice to get. Especially given how crazy things are for him right now.

If they'd have just thrown the money at PJ. But the real Peter Jackson question is one that's been asked for awhile: When will we see the much lauded director's cut of Dead Alive (Braindead) on DVD/Blu? <P>
At least that's the question I want answered.<P>
Also, I imagine PJ is still very passionate about the Hobbit (he is writing the screenplay/producing) but damn, when he's done, he's gonna look back at his life and say "Yep, I spent twenty years of my life making Hobbit movies".

if HOBBIT gets pushed back a year, I believe it could begin to fall apart. The various actors, technicians and behind the scenes folks have additional commitments. That's basically what happened with Guillermo. Nearly every name I've heard being attached to this as director has at least 2 - 5 additional projects in the works. Signed contracts and DATES to meet. This is becoming increasingly difficult - There's a lot of work that has to get done, all we can really do at this point is hope that about 20 things come together to get everything on track.

I dont have a lot of Faith in this new Spiderman, Tobey was perfect, Choosing the right peter parker is a tough choice, you need to choose a "Nice average Joe guy", but you could end with a "JonasBieberDrake douchebag" and I think they are going for the second option now. I hated Spidey 3 not just because of that Emo Spidey. Now I think the new Spiderman movie could be EMO SPIDEY style the whole time. I Hope not...

I keep telling people about Hausu, sending links to the trailers, and getting responses like "Um, that movie looks insane". And I'm like, "Exactly". <P>
I can't wait for the buildup to Halloween with all the Horror releases, especially Dark Night of the Scarecrow on 9/28!

At this point they could announce that the ghosts of Stanley Kubrck, Alfred Hitchcock and Akira Kurosawa have all signed on, it still wouldn't change the fact that until someone coughs up enough money to buy MGM, enough to guarantee no one at MGM loses a cent off their poor management and investing, the damn thing isn't getting made.

"Since joining Nikki Finke - it seems Fleming has decided to go a bit rogue, putting an emphasis on "first". It is funny, that's kind of how I started out too when I became an Internet Scooper. But now, often times I find myself with direct access to folks"
"It is fun to publicly speculate and wonder aloud. But then, I thought that's what disqualified me from being an official journalist... so I guess Michael Fleming is no different than the rest of us now. Getting pieces that don't quite fit and speculating publicly about them out of fear of being beat to the scoop. I guess, I shouldn't be upset at Fleming's fill in the blanks approach to Journalism now. After all it is the way of things these days. "
OUCH! Did Michael Fleming piss in your Cheerios? This may be the most mean-spirited post I've ever seen from Harry. A full-on rip in the guise of an "update" of the status of two projects. Not everyone has Peter Jack... I mean DEREK on speed dial!

Its a Shame Sony Did not carry on and do Spider-Man 4 they should off Kept Toby and Got a Director who grew up on the 90`s Comics. I love what Sam Rami has done so far with the franchice and loved that world he recreated from the 60`s books, but like the Harry Potter Series there is no reason why this world cant mature through somone elses eye and giving Maguire the material he needs to be the Spider-man that some off the Fans that grew up on the 90`s Cartoon want. It just feels shitty that both Marvel and Sony feel they have to Re-make somthing thats only 8 years old when all they really had to do was make one GREAT sequel! and after the miss mash off 3 they should off learnt there lessions about putting too many Villans in the mix. Hell I dont even think they need Dunst for a few of them as part 3 gives her Character the perfect out. Set part 4 straight after 3 have MJ pursue her modelling/Acting due to Harrys Death have spider-man no more and throw in Gwen Stacy and Betty Brant, Have Lizard as the Villan and bang a reason were Spidy has to Help a mate, there done theres the story shit I should really go make a movie and try and pitch that to Marvel!
As for the Hobbit was unforntunate for Del Torro to go, but hey Sam Rami aint doing anything just yet and he seemed to have a passion for it as well as he is an awsome director I say give him the gig if Jacksons not Directing otherwise Jackson Man up and step up dude Unless he`s affraid off doing a George Lucas (No Offence Lucas / Star Wars fans I loved his old stuff but the new stuff was... Phantom so-so Clone SHIT Sith That was ok but then thats all we were really gonna get :-( )

No axe to grind, it is a sincere criticism. Michael Fleming is better than he's been at Nikki - or at least he was at VARIETY. He's breaking more, but the stories have holes, unconfirmed sources and often times are "Maybe stories" and I used to love reading Fleming's rock solid stories at Variety.
<BR><BR>It just seems to me that when you really are a fan of someone's work, you talk straight and point out what you notice about them.
<BR><BR>That's how you guys often treat me and I try to listen and learn from even the most harsh and mean spirited criticism. This isn't mean, it is true. It isn't to defame, it is to possibly wake him up and get him back on his game.
<BR><BR>Because the fact is, Michael Fleming is one of the great Movie New reporters in modern history - and his game isn't what it was.

maybe it is meanspirited and I'm not aware. I am on steroids due to my recent incident and I do feel odd emotional feelings - but I certainly didn't mean for it to be MEAN. Read his HOBBIT and SPIDER-MAN stories - point to a named source or a single thing on the record and I'll give you a black box on talkback. It isn't full on shoddy reporting, he did confirm where Peter was flying to - and what type of players he was meeting with, but he jumped to conclusions which is something I never saw Michael do once at VARIETY.

from Community should be Spider Man. I would have freaked out if he had been the last Spider Man, but whitebread America had it's chance and went two for three. This is an idea who's time has come. Wake up!!! Also didn't they just announce Blomkamp was in serious talks for Hobbit?

Hey Harry since your on here I`m a guy that is doing a lot of Film Competitions latly what would be your best advice in terms off If I was to write and Direct my first feature what would be the best course of action in getting noticed to studios if it had a load off unknowns, I loved how Robert Rodriguez got started, and would like to do somthing like Desparado my e-mail is Sachman3@hotmail.com any advice is allways good and as a long time viewer of your site since 98 it would be a peasure to hear your thoughts!
Sach-Out!

this site, but isnt it kinda ridiculous that you no longer do the things you used to? This site has really changed (some good, some bad imho). What happend to the spy photos Harry, or the script reviews? Or the wild rumours? Yeah I get that it could burn some bridges, but was nt that the whole point of this site at one point? To try and scare Hollywood into making better films by letting stuff get out there if it was garbage (JJ's Superman script) and then letting the great unwashed masses of the internet deceide? Its almost like you have become part of the very thing you were a fly in the ointment of....

This article sounds a bit more like a cat fight than a news story... Not up to what I expected from AICN. Maybe I should. Regardless, I favor rapid information flow with accurate caveats on certainty. If someone wants to be first on a story, but all they have is an educated guess - tell us the guess and tell us what it is based on (in general, if not in specifics). If you'd rather hold off until you get supporting facts that transition guess into confirmed facts, do it and cite the supporting evidence.

with all the delays on the hobbit, what happens to all the actors? With their other projects in waiting, they cant just hang around waiting for the hobbit to get off the WAIT train..
Do you think they'll all be available once this thing starts filming?

I wouldn't mind having more script reviews on the site, but I just can't read the number of scripts that I used to. I do have 6 projects of my own that I'm constantly reading our writers' drafts of, giving notes on and working on at the same time as this.
<BR><BR>Also, you have to be able to review a script without directly quoting from it, because direct quotes are grounds for cease & desists. Something that used to be ignored by the Studios. And before you say, "YOU NEVER REMOVED STUFF IN THE OLD DAYS" - the first big scoop I posted was the Starship Troopers wireframes, and had to remove it when I got the c&d.
<BR><BR>and btw, JJ's SUPERMAN script was not crap, it was a 1st draft that was already being heavily rewritten at the time that Drew wrote that review with fixes going in on most of what Drew was screaming about. THAT said, I bet that many of you would have preferred that version to the Bryan Singer version that got made, at least according to the backlash I see on that film, which I happen to love too.
<BR><BR>As for becoming what I was fighting back then... Well, something that happens when you spend 14 years in a field is experience changes perspective. After working on JOHN CARTER OF MARS for years, I understand the intricacies of production and studio development far better than any outsider could. Same thing is true of Drew McWeeny, Eric Vespe, Nick Nunziata and several other folks that have been doing this for a decade or more. The giant problems facing the industry are not - getting the geek projects wrong all the time (though this summer certainly could fool you) - the big problems with the industry is the financial realities facing the studios in regards to how they're limiting "risk" by limiting personal exposure, as a result they get a smaller percentage of the success if it pays.
<BR><BR>Personally, I'm still trying to get a handle on the shifting realities of the film industry today. And how to really communicate the reality of what is wrong with the business today. When I started, what was wrong was pretty simple. THEY WERE MAKING BAD MOVIES of the properties us geeks love. Right now, the industry seems to have a limited grasp of how to really handle "FANTASY" that isn't Harry Potter or Tolkein New Zealand bound adventures. But I'm relatively happy with Science Fiction and Comic Book films (not Jonah Hex) - BUT we covered problems on Jonah. I published scathing test screening reviews. We still do that, when readers send them in, but frankly the non-disclosures that the studios have test screening audiences sign scares a lot of would be scoopers off. They don't have your hunger to get the truth, but if you go to a test screening, I'll hide your identity and NEVER EVER give you up ever. I can't tell you how many showdowns I've had over that policy, but I absolutely refuse to budge upon it.
<BR><BR>But now, so much of those people figure we wouldn't notice their reports, but I tell ya I do go through all my emails and run what I come across when I can.

...is a section where there is a list of movies/possible projects and their current statuses, updated whenever something resembling news is released. For example I'd also love to know what's currently up with Alita. I'm waiting on developments with Wonder Woman, and everyone has their ears to the ground on the Batman sequel.

That's part of the problem. That's why producers are flying to meet with actors to see what their shifting time schedules mean. I haven't had those conversations with "DEREK" - we've mainly been talking about geeky fun stuff that isn't film related these days. And my own medical realities. BUT - if the dates move, they could be facing recasting some of those parts in addition to attaching WHOMEVER might get tapped as director. But Peter's quote at the bottom of the story is very heartfelt. Yes, I know more than I can share. And yes, I know people like to doubt that for some reason, though on LORD OF THE RINGS - me and theonering tend to have the best record.

is now in the hands of the accountants and not the artists. They will salivate over the sales of the Twitlit movies and try to create an algorithim to making this movie: teen angst + dousche cast + sappy meandering plot = $$$$

ALITA is threatened by the sheer enormity of AVATAR's success and the push for AVATAR 2. But I'll write Jim to see if I can get an answer for ya. --- And I haven't really been tracking WONDER WOMAN, I'll try to get into that for ya.

sounds like a massive rush of technicalities and scheduling. Its a damn wonder the art behind the story doesnt get completely lost in that whirlpool of stress :P
By the way, if you need script reviewers, what do I have to do to apply to review some for you? I'm a torrential writer and a medical doctor. And I fucking love the arts.

That might be true, but how is that any different than Spiderman 3? Spiderman 3 is quite possibly one of the five worst films I've ever seen. Just plain awful. Honestly, I think Sam Raimi should have done a DARKMAN sequel. Fuck Spiderman.

I disagree. From what I've heard, Marc Webb has been nothing if not incredibly impressive thus far on the project. Let's see how his casting decisions go - everything the geek community has right now is speculation built upon supposition. Not a script. Not quotes from Webb (how is that not the perfect last name for the director of SPIDER-MAN)

Yeah, "Yoko" is the shit! My personal Wonder Woman. And as for SLY - he hurt his neck really bad towards the end of EXPENDABLES, so I can imagine him getting out from in front of the camera. But I'll find out Monday.

It's great when the writer of a piece actually moderates the Talkback for a real back and forth with the readers that expands on the story and its implications. I realize that this isn't always possible and sometimes the writer is too busy with their next assignment, but it really makes reading AICN a more personal experience. I know its hard sometimes when the Talkbacks get critical and nasty, and this can easily lead to a pissing contest with Talkback trolls (I remember Drew getting into a number of real doozies!), but as witnessed in this case, when the writer sits in to communicate with his readership the dialogue quickly becomes more intellectual and inquizitive and less incendiary. Maybe this is the steroids talking, but I like it! Just thought I'd say so.

Coolio dude totally understand the Sunday thing its just wrong lol, I guess your right regurding Spider-man cant really judge it till we see some thing. I was look forward to Batal Angle. anyhow I`m off back to watch the football followed by The Killer Inside me

So many people are constantly spewing sewage all over these talkbacks, but few people bother to take the time for a simple moment of kindness. (Your post about the allergic reaction being an exception, obviously.) With that in mind, I just wanted to say thank you for making and continuing to run this site. I absolutely could not do it, and I don't think there are many people who could. Don't let the haters get you down! I've been checking this site on an almost daily basis for a decade now, and I bet most of your most vocal critics do the same thing. I'm pretty sure that means you are winning.

Your site has been Notorious for ripping off other sites content, for not giving them credit, for using sock puppets (like the infamous 'White Queen') as 'scources', for that whole Drew's Script fiasco, for being a mouth piece for plants, for shilling for your friends--Del Toro, Petey Jax, Rodriguez, etc. C'mon. That's your site to a T. <p> I think much of this stuff was at its worse say 8-10 years ago and has improved, but let's not kidding ourselves here. <p> Chris Gore you ain't.

I didn't sleep last night. That this entire interaction is due to steroids giving me a buzz that just won't let my brain rest. I'll be so glad to get off these things, they fucking make me productive. Y'all read that THELMA SCHOONMAKER story from Aruba I wrote. That was fucking 3700 words long. with YOUTUBE links, then there was this story - which required going back and forth with Peter to get his quote... wherever on the planet that he is. And I've been away since 2 hours ago Yesterday - have done an hour 45 minutes in the gym, gone to local comic shop, went to the mall with my wife, watched 5 movies with my nephew, played with the dog, cleaned up the kitchen and have been tweeting, talkbacking, facebooking and writing emails to folks like Edgar Wright and I just sent one to Cameron a little while ago for y'all.

just submit to the Harry@aintitcool.com account. If it is a well reasoned review we'll consider running it. I'd love to get more content from you folks. Y'all certainly seem to want more to Talkback about.

While I'm not a fan of Deadline Hollywood, it is undeniable that they break more stories than just about everyone combined. And to see Harry try to put himself on a high horse with his, "I remember back when I was new to this thing, I was immature with my writing. But now I'm MUCH better getting scoops and don't report rumor much." Just...wow.
Get over yourself, Harry. You're sight is entertaining for sure, but on par with the Enquirer and not really a breaking, legit news source. To try and imply you're above Deadline Hollywood, or others in the business, it laughable

And (honest question here) with your close relationship with some filmakers, how do you decide what news to publish and what not to? Don't you always end up "betraying" either your readership or your big name friends, Harry? Complicated stuff, specially considering you wouldn't have the second without the first.

Because I was commenting on "unnamed sources" and while I knew everyone and their brother would know who that quote came from, I figured for the REAL Jackson fans, I'd remind them of what should be their favorite Jackson film.... BAD TASTE... or was that BRAINDEAD... or MEET THE FEEBLES.... or HEAVENLY CREATURES... or THE LORD OF THE RINGS...

There are better ways to prove your point without throwing in the "I'm better than them" angle. Minus that angle, great story/observation (although one of your staffers wrote a similar story hyping Jackson's possible involvement less than 40 hours ago). If you're truly a superior scooper, you'd drop the ego garbage and focus only on the fact. THAT'S what separates you from the pros

This site has 5 editors. They each are free to write. Personally, when I first wrote Peter about it, the story wasn't up on the site yet, but by the time he got back to me that first time, the story had been posted. I didn't write a follow up piece - but when I saw the SPIDER-MAN story which had similar blank spots and seemingly to have guesswork, I was a little shocked, so I expressed my concern, because I personally hold Mike Fleming in the highest possible esteem, I just don't like what he's become at Deadline.

We need 5 more years to let the desire build up again. I wouldn't mind a little tiny cameo in the Avengers film (like maybe a news paper article), but that's about it. It's almot like they are force feeding us this movie now. As far as the Hobbit goes, I lost 80% interest when Del Toro jumped ship. I have that sinking feeling that Jackson's second take on Middle Earth will be like Lucas's second take on a Galaxy Far Far Away.

We need 5 more years to let the desire build up again. I wouldn't mind a little tiny cameo in the Avengers film (like maybe a news paper article), but that's about it. It's almot like they are force feeding us this movie now. As far as the Hobbit goes, I lost 80% interest when Del Toro jumped ship. I have that sinking feeling that Jackson's second take on Middle Earth will be like Lucas's second take on a Galaxy Far Far Away.

We need 5 more years to let the desire build up again. I wouldn't mind a little tiny cameo in the Avengers film (like maybe a news paper article), but that's about it. It's almot like they are force feeding us this movie now. As far as the Hobbit goes, I lost 80% interest when Del Toro jumped ship. I have that sinking feeling that Jackson's second take on Middle Earth will be like Lucas's second take on a Galaxy Far Far Away.

I hardly ever post in AICN, but today is the exception. Just gotta put in my two cents that it's pretty cool to see you posting at such a high frequency Harry. Pretty sweet, dude.
<br>
More of this, please.

Of course there are contracts in place and projects in the works for all of the key actors. But timing here is the really critical thing if you want to get Christopher Lee back in the frame. He recently turned 88, and as much as we like to think that he's immortal/undead, he probably won't be fit enough to film something like The Hobbit in 2 years time when he's 90.
Anyone fancy calling Steve Jobs and getting him to purchase MGM and create The iHobbit?

For the last 14 years my days start and end with the following websites: AICN, Dark Horizons, Yahoo Entertainment news, Latino Review, Movie Hole, Coming Soon, Superhero Hype, JoBblo! And I got to meet Harry in 1998 when he personally reviewed the Phantom Menace script to me.

is such a bullshit excuse to not reboot. I mean, Pierce Brosnan was gone, what - a blink, and then Daniel Craig took it over and I've been happy. AS long as they make a great movie, there's no such thing as too soon. Should they have halted SPIDER-MAN for like 2 years after MacFarlane left the run because his was so popular?
<BR><BR>SPIDER-MAN is a serial character and I want to see Spidey films like I do JAMES BOND movies... I mean in my life I've seen 17 James Bond films. And even the silliest stupid Bond films make me happy at some level. Now, I hope Spidey fares better than the low wattage BONDS, but really... SPIDER-MAN 3 as a complete film is only about as great as MOONRAKER? Maybe? No I happen to love MOONRAKER, but it embarrassed the hell out of my Dad who loved Connery. I see this as a chance to jettison Dunst, who I love in many films - but just I've never been a mopey Mary Jane fan. I want "Face it tiger, you just hit the jackpot" as the cliffhanger after a REAL GREEN GOBLIN has killed Gwen Stacy.

A tv show, web series, or podcast. Not that I'm too lazy to read, I just think it would be...cool.
Also, I agree with The Reluctant Austinite, the back and forth dialogue is refreshing.
Harry, what does it take to be a script reviewer for a website like yours and/or a studio?

I've personally known Al since about 1974. On John Carter I was reaching out to bring him onto the project when we discovered he had Alzheimers. Al used to do workshops with artists in my Parents' comic shop back in the day and frankly. The news of his passing really really depresses me. I have his artwork around me, as I collect EC comics and original EC art. Have some beautiful covers. But - I suppose I should get that OBIT up, but I was putting it off because I got tremendous personal news on Monday - that I'll announce at Comic Con... and my brain just was not in OBIT writing mode. Then on Thursday, I nearly died. Since then... I'd say my mind has been on a 1000 things. Wondering about the design one finds when one examines their lives. I mean, WHY did I marry Patricia? I mean, I could very well be dead right now, save for her. Why on our second date did my mind tell me MARRY HER. Everything just felt right. Being with her sang like no song I'd ever sung before. But that choice of mate saved my life. The thing that happened on Monday happened because I was doing a friend a favor by doing something earlier this year - which put me in the right place, right time kind of thing, that connected to shit I've been a part of since birth that I never dreamt... well... you'll see. Announcement at Comic Con. BUT - you see how unfocused this Prednisone is.

I think my only real problem with reboots is when they don't do anything creatively fresh or different. They essentially tell the same story with updated effects and people. If we have to sit through 30 minutes of film to see Peter Parker become Spider-man again, I'll be upset since they would basically be covering what people already know. However, I would be ok with a two or three minute flashback.

I'm betting it would descend into the 13th ring of hell, saved for flame baiting beasts... But then I could use it to break out the mighty Ban Hammer - though I have to say, I'm tired of swinging my uru ban hammer at that fucking guy from China that is spamming us. Just dropped a note to my techs about his isp - we're probably about to lock out that entire isp, because he has a ... trade secret.

Ones about soldiers giving perhaps half their pay to buy gooks toothbrushes and deodorants, that's the winning of hearts and minds; and ones about combat actions that result in a kill -- winning the war. Not the third kind - the fucking counterfeit shoes.

As excited as I am for this year's Con, I twice as excited for next year's Con. With the sheer amount of Comic book movies expected in 2012, that should be the Con to attend if someone has never attended. On a selfish note, I'm still hoping they move it to Anaheim or LA, so I won't have as far to drive.

This was the same practice that allowed the Bush administration to release shoddy information to publications like the New York Time. Bush would then point to these newspapers (who had published information he selectively leaked) as proof that we needed to go to war. Journalism is a dying art.

Why are we wasting so much time discussing casting, directing or anything hobbit related? THERE IS NO MONEY AT MGM TO MAKE THESE MOVIES!
Just as there is no money to make any Bond films either and this isn't going to change next week or even next month. Hell it might not change for a year or more. So why are we constantly talking about the Hobbit like it's going to start next week? Casting, Directing, it means nothing without the funds.

Its all about the greenbacks, it has been since day one. Occasionally, we get something that is journalism like the social reforms under Teddy Roosevelt, Watergate and a few other stories that show humanity there is still something called truth out there. Now, its just talking heads who can scream the loudest while making the most ridiculous claims. Humans have the most information ever in creation and continue to be morons. As for the Hobbit, Jackson will get it and what little money MGM has left will go into getting him. Spiderman is dead to me after the Raimi debacle. The same studio that shoved Venom in thanks to the fans is now going to get some douche hipster to do a Twilight version of Marvel's best known character. Never trust the failures in charge.

Comic Con is going to be fascinating for me this year. I'm hosting the EXPENDABLES panel in Hall H. I'll be doing the Radical panel again this year. But I'm also producing the Comic Con doc - and we've yet to discuss the physical what we're doing at Con with me. We're still finding the people we're going to follow. But it is my understanding that the COMIC CON DOC will be having a booth and that I'll be most likely involved there. I will also be a part of another booth, YOU'LL SEE - pending announcement. And I'll probably be there too. I will also be in HALL H a bit when I'm not on that crazy stage.

The "amateurs" are becoming professionals and the "professionals" are becoming amateurs. Some of the best, most groundbreaking pieces of journalism are from online sources, while newspapers are abdicating their responsibility to be arbiters of truth. <p>
If any other publication had received the same interview that Rolling Stone got from McCrystal, I can guarantee you they wouldn't have published half of what he said. Most newspapers and magazines these days are too afraid of losing access to portray someone in power in a negative light. What Harry has pointed out is a part of a much larger problem.

But it's just long enough to build up a craving for new Spiderman. And I hope they get away from Hobgoblins, Green Goblins, Orange Goblins,etc. I hope they take on a serious villan like Kraven. That's what Spidey needs!

I was really hoping to see more tv show panels and the floor itself, but that Hall H consumes me. In years past, I've gone in early morning and not left until the last panel, usually reserved for Kevin Smith. Hall H, a blessing and a curse.

but why hasn't there been any updates or rumors or anything regarding the star wars blurays from the Lucas camp? It's like that news hit, it was huge and then there was complete silence on the whole thing.

If we're talking journalism here one thing that does sort of bother me about AICN is how they often proliferate bad rumors excitably, get some egg in their face and then follow it up with some nasty article about how their source was unreliable and has no ethics while taking no responsibility for their own culpability in spreading the news. I know it's important to keep the hits coming but at the expense of solid news? Most silly rumors dont see the light of day if not for the huge platform that AICN affords.
I like rumors like anyone else. News to keep us busy. I check the site daily. I dont mind if something comes out wrong. What I have not appreciated in the past though is when AICN eiher doesnt apologize or even attacks their source when the whole point of journalism is to check your source in the first place.

I'm originally from San Diego though....so I'll be visiting and staying with family. No need to book rooms. Are you going to be there on Thursday and Friday? I waited too long on buying the Saturday pass. I'll spend most of thursday getting my books signed and then the rest of Friday checking out the panels. Then after that it's time for the beach and booty watch.

well in the case of Mr Fleming, I'm sure that Mr Beaks posted that piece regarding Fleming's piece - it was coming from THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER's Heatvision Blog. He assumed that they must know of what they speak. I don't assume anymore when I know how to reach the filmmaker, I reach out to the filmmaker to check to see if the "story" is the story.

I usually take time out on Fridays and Sundays to check out the floor. Saturdays are next to impossible to do it cause the corporate "coolness" is just too cool! I'd rather be in Hall H seeing a never-before-seen clip of Thor than to check out a never before action figure of Thor on the floor. Especially since the action figure will still be there later. I'm really looking forward to the Documentary. Comic-con is an experience I try to relate to my friends that don't go, but have an interest in the things that come out of it. The pictures and videos I bring back don't do it justice. I have a whole "system" worked out for each day based on what I want to see. I bet a lot of people do and that's what I'm hoping the documentary covers as well. Attending Comic-con is hard work! I've often wondered why the planners for Comic-con don't have a dedicated room at the Con that has a screen where you can catch some of the other big panels you can't get into. Sort of an "overflow" room. I'd even settle for streaming of some of those panels- with regard to the fact that they would have to blank out for the stuff they don't want leaked out.

"And Windows where were you?"
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"Where were you Childs?"
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You're taking quite an active roll in this TB. Just taking it easy for the day?
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Oh and since I've got your attention. I've e-mailed this to you several times: On Monday can you designate a talkback that posts the BO figures for the prior weekend.
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I think it would be one of the most popular TB's along with your DVD column.
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Seriously, it's a good idea.

The reason we haven't heard more is that the news that was reported was news without an announced date. Instead it was someone asking Sansweet what we could expect from a Blu Ray release - and he did talk about how they're looking at doing all sorts of stuff, getting things ain't nobody done ever heard of - all with a very happy salesman pitch... but no date. Till there is a date, there is no reality to STAR WARS Blu Rays... which will probably be timed for 6 months prior to a STAR WARS 3D Theatrical set of rereleases. Much like those THX VHS about 6 months prior to the SPECIAL EDITIONS being announced as being released in theaters. Enough to raise the brand back into the minds, but then after we all have it, there's a new carrot to follow into the theaters, back onto home video, which leads to new carrot, into the theater, back onto Home Video... It is a neverending cycle... I hope.

I plan out my Comic Con visits too, but once you're there it's like everything get's thrown out the window. You get caught up in all the cool shit and forget the mission. It's just like what Mike Tyson said " Everyone has a plan, until they get punched in the face"

I was thinking about installing a disposal at the bottom of my tub for that exact reason, but when I back my ass up to install the faucet to clean me out, I worry about my cock getting ground up. How do you do it?

No. I really don't like Box Office news. To me, it is statistical crap that has ruined the business much as discussions about Baseball, Football, Basketball player salaries have damaged sports. I mean. Can you imagine if we had weekly numbers for which Gas Company was on top - and we tracked it weekly? The concept that we use those numbers for some odd sense of validation for the quality of our art is kind of sickening to me. And I don't want that to be what AICN is about. We discuss the love of film with a slight nose for the financial realities - but to me, I try to avoid soulless conversations about money.

Sometimes it feels like I'm making life and death decisions! Should I sit through the Saw 18 panel to see the Green Lantern panel or should I check out 20 minutes of the Dexter panel and rush back to Hall H. That used to work, but nowadays, once you're in Hall H, you pretty much have to stay. It's next to impossible getting back in there.

Looking at the article linked to above, they show the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man in his Spidey-tights. I wonder whether they'll drastically change the suit (a la Schumacher Nipple-Bat vs. Nolan-Bat.) It seems like they'd have to, to distinguish between directors. I mean, one look at (500) Days and it's obvious that Webb has a completely different visual style, but they still need to show that this is a new beginning. A shame tho, since Raimi's Spidey-Tights were probably the best real-world interpretation of a superhero costume. For once they found a way to bring a flat, highly stylized, ultra-colorful image to the screen and not have it look like shiny spandex or change it to dark leather. Will they go with a more spindly, wide-eyed "Ultimate Spider-Man" look? Get rid of the textured mini-webs? Leave the top of the hood off to show off teh awesome emo-Parker's emo-do?<p>The first TB I ever posted in was when we saw the first glimpse of the Green Goblin in all his Power Ranger glory. Feels like coming home. Thanks for the site, Harry.

"The concept that we use those numbers for some odd sense of validation for the quality of our art is kind of sickening to me."
You should write a whole article about that. It would be commentary, not news but at least some small measure you're in a position to attempt to influence the culture of cinema. Not to sound gaudy.

But do some sniffing around and see if you can find out who the main villians in BATMAN 3 are gonna be. I've heard Catwoman, but we need you to start emailing Michael Uslan or other folks who are involved in this project.

I know it doesn't mean shit and you posting it wouldn't be an endorsment of the validity of BO figures or your belief in such.
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We don't need your site to find out what movie did what business on what weekend, I'm just saying it would probably be the most popular TB's every week.
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It's you site, I just think it would make for an entertaining TB which is a main attraction of this site. As most articles are centered on one piece of news this would be one where us TBer's could bitch and rant and speculate about anything we want. It would just be under the heading of a BO article.

Somewhere in my house I have Turner Classic Movie channel on pretty much 24/7. That's what would be cool. A AICN movie channel. It would be like an endless film festival of odd and forgotten film. If we were talking Jan Svankmajer for some reason then the next day we would get Little Otik. If yet another glittery vampire sparkle pony crapfest is about to assault the theatres we would get The Hunger or Vamp or something.

So long as Harry is around, I was wondering why Vern doesn't post more often. I know that he has his own website where he posts about his idiosyncratic interests, but why does he post some things there and some here? Why not just make him a full time contributor? Does he want to be independent from Ain't it Cool, or is it the decision of this website? Just wondering.

You remember them? One fart away from communism. Yeah that works great. Nothing like being an American slave. Everyone clear on the whole if you want to leave America you have to give away half of your wealth and then another 30% on top depending on your bracket. Everyone fully understand that there was no hole in the footage taken of the pentagon just seconds after the attacks. Everyone notice the phalanx of lies we've seen since that moment that has never ceased and has been as audacious as a phalanx of lies could ever be? Ever notice who actually runs the world and benefits from all of our little scurrying. Ever notice that we're all just the flies buzzing around the turds that the real world players leave for us? Now get with it Harry! The reason we come here is because this is the only place on earth where someone can learn a modicum of truth about spiderman. We are not discerning of our real world(if we were there would be non-stop rioting)-but we demand to know who spiderman is!

Script, actors, performances, these are all things that can go in the dumpster, true. But look at (500) Days of Summer, or dig into his music video resume for some fantastic looking music videos, even if you dislike the bands, the videos for MCR's "I'm No Okay" or Brand New's "Sic Transit Gloria" or Weezer's "Perfect Situation" are all just visual feasts in about every frame. Webb Spidey movie = if anything, really pretty cool looking. Rami was getting a bit stale in his filmmaking anyway by the end, aside from the Sandman first arises / Eddie gets Venom'd scene in the church, I don't think Spidey 3 was all that inspired visually. Nothing as batshit awesome as the chainsaw Doc Ock sequence from Spidey 2.

I'm in! Harry did say he wants to give back to all fandom. So I doubt he would waste the opportunity to announce something like an Aint it Cool iPhone app or something. It's has to be something huge! Even if it was a daily podcast, I'd be on-board.

That twat always lies about what his intentions are. The proof? One day, he's going to be STARRING in a John Gotti film. The next day, he's "retiring." He's a lying sack of shit that lies to get publicity for himself. Don't get me wrong, Rocky Balboa and Rambo were AMAZING - but, he fucks with everyone too much and I have no tolerance for that.

I never viewed it as a reboot when a new actor took over the role of Bond. (Of course who the eff had even heard of a "reboot" until recent years??) As far as I can remember, they just inserted the new guy and didn't bother with re-telling the origin story. (at least not until the Craig era.) The pre-Nolan Batman flicks were like that; five films with three different Batmans. Anymore we get maybe a trilogy and then a reboot, which starts over from the beginning with a new cast. It's franchises by way of adhd.

can you please give us the secret identity of JettL1993? since he happens to be writing every goddamn movie being made right now, he's gotta be somebody noteworthy? where is his isp located? does it amuse you when he spreads mis-information? because now everybody just feeds his ego and goes along with it. its a vile, evil thing now. somebody must put a stop to it!

...is one of the best in a long damn time. I mostly troll and barely post, but this is just an awesome TB. Pretty good article too, Harry. That's why I love State of Play. BTW, who's all going to The Walking Dead panel at Comic-Con?

Does Spider Man even have a script yet? Who cares about Spider Man. Most fans admit they hate the Tobey Maguire movies. I loved all three of them, can we get an article on what happened to Kristen Bell's career?

That's what I always liked about the movie side of this site, Box Office didn't matter. I wish the Coaxial section was the same, but 90% of it is about what shows ratings are and how Herc's favorites are beating what ABC show in the ratings that week.

Is common in people of my generation, it is called NSAID, I'm told. You can not be tested for it according to multiple allergists that have written me. What happens is, you develop this - and all of a sudden, even though I'd taken Advil, Aleve... the non-Tylenol brand painkillers my whole life... I'd never had a ill effect. Well, now Advil and Aleve and those type of products are potentially lethal to me. SO... I CHOOSE TYLENOL, to choose life.
<BR><BR>This is not yet what my doctors have told me, because the ER doc said to wait 4 days to make an appointment, but thanks to many allergists that read AICN and were worried, upon listening to what I had have all independently and separately agreed that this IS what happened to me.
<BR><BR>Given ADVIL was blamed by my father's doctor as contributing to his stroke a few years ago. And my sister developed kidney issues from taking them in junior high and high school... I would like to say, FUCK ADVIL.

None of us have a clue what stylistic changes will be in store with us. All I know is the director did the most awesome Han Solo cameo in film history in his 500 DAYS OF SUMMER, so I officially am on his side, till he fucks up SPIDER-MAN. Which I honestly don't think will occur.

Yeah, but hate preachy pieces like that. giggles to self thinking about the article that I'm commenting on. Giggle. Just baiting ya. Nah, I've thought about it, but it is in my book. My entire philosphy on how BOX OFFICE STATS have ruined the industry.

No, haven't bought Drafthouse. BUT Tim League now controls the whole Drafthouse empire and has announced that he intends to expand in all manners of cities across the US. Including places like NY & LA - and I will be involved in those things with Tim, since I'm an advisor to the Drafthouse. But like I said, that's already been announced. My thing is new.

I've never met or spoken to him. Other than getting him drunk and talking to him about the poisonous vapor used to make BLADE RUNNER look awesome... I'd rather leave Nolan alone. He's fucking amazing thus far.

Glad you're ok Harry. I'm running on a crazy caffeine buzz trying to get through exams, but I got nothing on your 'roids. Just make sure you don't work yourself right back into the hospital. It's nice to have you talkative, but like with "the empire", we like ya live and happy. :)

Certainly not because he was sleeping... fucking steroid highs.... No, my sister came over to pick up my nephew leaving me alone for the first time since the "incident" - So... of course, I've been whacking it. Just kidding, my sis hadn't heard my version of the ER story, and needed a good laugh. Literally, it is the funniest story I own right now. Plus I had to show her some fun stuff I'm working on, one of which I'll announce at Comic Con

you have to understand, I have zero frame of reference for what the Sonic Screwdriver does. Someday I'll get a friend that is a Dr Who freak and they'll guide me down that scary and unfamiliar alley of fandom. And I bet I fucking love it.

Might as well go big, otherwise it's not as thrilling. I'm willing to double-down on my bet. Only other thing I could think of is an Aint-it-Cool weekly magazine to be purchased in stores, but the way everything is moving, it wouldn't seem practical.

The close proximity of you joking about whacking off and then admitting you don't know what a Sonic Screwdriver does... Man, you just made me realize that somewhere in this fucked up internet is Doctor Who Sonic Screwdriver porn. I really could have gone through life without that epiphany. Now... now I got to go back to studying about mental retardation/intellectual disability for my exam... and goddamn that's a bad transition!

"The Empire"? She doesn't deserve that, she saved my life. But then, she did that nearly 5 years ago when she curled up that first date to watch LIVE FREAKY, DIE FREAKY... you have to admit, that film - to dying from ADVIL would eerily have described our lives.

It was a kid show turned into a somewhat Shakespeare tragedy by the current lot. Wikipedia it then start with Season 1 of the new series. As much as I hate to say it I am wrong about Matt Smith being the new Doctor. I think you should expand the drafthouse, there some great old theaters in this country that are in desperate need of revamping or a take over.

As a fellow joiner of the "dark side" I mean nothing by it. Besides, Empire Strikes back was the best of the series! Though lets not get too analytical of the worm scene... or the sequel's toothed pit that Boba fall in---AND WE'RE DONE. ;)

reeeeeeaaaally? ok people. you heard it from Harry, JettL1993 is none other than the writer of Jennifer's body, Juno, and Showtime's "The United States of Tara" wow, i kinda figured he has a pussy.... man, she doesnt take direct credit for anything except that handful of work. she's so generous to lend a hand writing so many blockbusters and not taking credit for it directly, but rather in our beloved talkbacks. man, who woulda thunk it?

Damn economy. I went last year for the first time and had a blast but was fucking hoping for some EXPENDABLES but alas my luck apparently sucketh.
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Oh well. I moved to Austin last fall. We'll see ya at Fantastic Fest, Harry.

I wouldn't sweat it, but you should definitely try and attend next year. Based on some of the movies coming out in 2012 (Spider-man, Batman, Superman(?), Captain America, The Avengers, Star Trek, X-men Origins, etc.), next year's Comic-con will be fully loaded.

Good that Harry recognises Cameron as the master of action. Looking forward to any potential Alita news. Cameron shouldn't sequelize Avatar, it's a perfectly good stand-alone movie. Having said that any sequel Cameron does make will probably be awesome.

Have you already contacted those who you are considering using in the doc? Have all of the emails been read? I'm wondering because I was confident my story would catch your eye. I mention Amazing Spiderman Vol. 1, Star Wars canon and The Next Generation in the first sentence. Looking forward to seeing the Expendables panel in a few weeks!

What we just experienced the test of the new AICNbot. It's an AI that can monitor the forums and respond with very Harry-like answers. It was the failsafe if something happened to Harry and the crew. Wait for it...in a couple days we will get word that Harry and the crew all crashed in an Iowa corn field. All except Vern who gave his seat up to the Big Bopper...er...Moriarty.

Its put out by Forgotten Films its Region 1 blu ray and it is sweet...$20.00 includes shipping from ebay and almost twice as much through Amazon...This one the real deal, great detail , great source print,and 1080p b/w
Night of the living dead..This will be the best it will look till The Wienstiens do something if anything with it.

It stands to reason that PJ directing The Hobbit would probably be key to securing financing. The hold up now is over what? Financing. PJ = Green Light. I wonder if Jackson actively does not want to direct but is feeling massive pressure to get the project launched.
Harry I agree that a fascination with numbers has effected the industry, but I disagree with your gas company analogy. We do track all those figures, in the stock market.

First, I agree that the choice of director is acceptable. I enjoyed 500 Days of Summer and thought it had a ton of visual wit.
However, if Raimi, a well established director, was bent to the will of the studio and forced to include Venom in the third film, I cannot imagine what sort of demands the studio will make of an up and coming director. This is what truly has me afraid that the studio wants to do a Twilight makeover of the material. <p>
Also, I would have loved to have seen Raimi create another Spider-Man film. In his three movies he has created one of the great immersive worlds of cinema. Hell, I would take Spider-Man 2 over The Dark Knight. Sure, 3 had some flaws, but most of these had to do with cramming too much (namely, Venom) into the story.

That part was at least well acted. Sandman was awful on every level- his personal story (about the Tiny Tim daughter who appeared in one scene and then was forgotten) was terrible. Being wedged into Spidey's origin story was offensive to fans, he disappeared for long, convenient sections of time, and THC was a mediocre actor. The only good part of Sandman was his reassembling sequence. <p> For the new spidey I'm just hoping it's not Jamie Bell. A british 24-year-old with an angular face is not Peter. Imagine the sequel in 4 years- 28 year old actor plays high school spidey, and his haggard face looks like he's almost 40. They should an actual teenager and if he grows between movies it's because teenagers are SUPPOSED to grow up.

Although I didn't chime in, regular full discussions like this would be really cook. Kind of like a AICN round table. If trolls want to drop in, they could be dropped or ignored, but even as a spectator this was amazing access to so many of us who appreciate you Harry. Thanks for a great afternoon of F5!

Like you did in the old days, and label them as such (RUMOR), rather than wait for a confirmation. It's a rumor. It's fun to speculate. And it's fun for us to do so int alkbacks. So please, indulge us, and post rumors more often!

Uh....yeah. The cast for Predator was so badass that JCVD had to quit the Alien role because he was an undersized runt compared to everyone else. I don't even count The Abyss as an action movie. So let's compare the cast of Aliens to Predator. Hmmmm......Arnold vs Sigourney Weaver. T2 is a classic, but not quite there. Edrward Furlong's corney dialog (Hasta la vista, baby) didn't help either,

Hollywood Suit#1: In this one, let's have more aliens. Hollywood Suit#2: Yeah, millions of aliens!. Hollywodd Suit#3: Yeah Yeah, and let's have like a Super Mother Alien too! Hollywood Suit#2: And let's make one of the Aliens a Lesbian to broadened it's appeal!

Why in the world would Harry be upset about a journalist? Is it his business? Is he the journalist police? Man-o-man! And, making movies is a spectator sport..to you. You need to stick a pin into your head to deflate it just a tad. You have NOTHING TO DO WITH MAKING MOVIES!!!!

without failure. They are always on topic, never inflammatory, and yet, somehow, always get deleted within minutes. Nikki Finke needs a Warren Beatty type to pull on her what Beatty did to Pauline Kael... basically defang the fucking soul-sucking vampire witch. That inflammatory enough?

Two years ago... hell, even one year ago... I'd have said, 'Dude, go get your aluminum foil helmut on and sit in your room, the adults are talking...' Now, like THX once said about the audience... I'm listening.

I'm going to get my 4 day pass when they go on sale for '11 for sure. Last year's Comic-Con was awesome. I got to fist bump Adam West, for fucks sake. I just hope the Suicide Girls get to come back, man!

you are kicking ass and taking numbers. Fucking ANSWERS to criticism?!?! Amazing! And he's right about the c&d's, the same shit goes on with the PLETHORA of screenwriting blogs... it's a lot tougher than it used to be and of course the site will reflect that. Studios are awash in lawyers, is it really any surprise? I loved what Harry said about 'getting a handle on the shifting realities and what's wrong with the movie industry today'... more of that shit, please.

On your point about box office, I just have to get this out: I absolutely hate the word franchise when applied to a series of movies or an media phenomenon. I mean, the word evokes burgers and fries, pizzas, not movies for me. I'd much rather calls something a Trilogy, A quadrilogy, a Saga, a series, than call it a franchise. I know financial talk makes some people dance on their tippy-toes with girlish glee, but some people forget that most people can't quote to you what kind of paycheck an actor got, or the proceeds the movie made. The only reason its so persistent is that its a numerical measure, and with that they can pretend whatever conclusion they come to is scientific, rather than a more heuristic judgment call which they can actually be blamed personally for.

I wish Peter would commit to directing it. When he looks back at his body of work, these films will be his legacy. As much as I enjoy Bad Taste, Meet the Feebles, or Heavenly Creatures, the Tolkien films are far more polished, and better crafted. I'm not in the know, but I wonder if PJ committed, if the financial backing for the film might suddenly appear. At this point, the window is narrowing, and if a decision is not made before Summer's end, I think sadly it will all fall apart.

Cause Die Hard is, imho, the greatest action movie ever made. Sorry, I think Cameron is awesome, he shoots badass action in an exciting yet elegant and understandable manner, but sometimes his stuff is a little clunky because of the acting, dialogue, odd lighting choices, etc... Die Hard is an absolute cinematic masterpiece. I think as time goes on, I'm realizing that certain movies (Alien and Die Hard being the best two examples) grow immensely in stature as I realize just how flawless they are, not only in terms of action, suspense, and screenplay, but also in acting, production design, and dialogue. These are areas where I always find Cameron to be a bit more predictable or downright corny when you compare his work to, say, Alien, Blade Runner, Die Hard, Predator, and Robocop.

You're right! Blade Runner is better than anything James Cameron has done, and that includes the Terminator. I'm a huge fan of Cameron's work, but Scott's Alien and Blade Runner have no equal in the SF genre, except maybe, Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

You're right! Blade Runner is better than anything James Cameron has done, and that includes the Terminator. I'm a huge fan of Cameron's work, but Scott's Alien and Blade Runner have no equal in the SF genre, except maybe, Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Your's is awesome too. Here's a better link to mine: http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac334/waylonanderson/?action=view&current=SuicideGirlsComicCon08.jpg
HARRY- you need to start a thread for the best Suicide Girls Fan Pics!!!!

Really? How so? I like a good SF action yarn, as much as the next person, but the best SF has always pushed beyond that limitation. I suppose you think Metropolis, or The Day the Earth Stood Still are boring, too?

that were sequels...not an easy task (sequels usually suck). But as good as they were, Predator and Die Hard still own. Now I don't care that Jimmy made a teenybopper movie about a couple of lesbians who fall in love on a sinking ship. My biigest problem with him is that he always put's corney (almost George Lucas corney) crap into his movies. ie: Edward furlong, etc... He also uses the same type of characters, like Sigourney Weaver (Avatar, Aliens, and that bitch from The Abyss might as well have been Sigourney). Look at Michelle Rodriguez in Avatar, she's a exact copy of Private Vasquez from Aliens. Hell, Cameron even admitted to wanting to use Michael Biehn in Avatar, but said "it would be like Aliens all over again".

Well, okay. I had been just boycotting the current blathering about the film after the tumult. Bunny, you are right on: Spidey 3 was a mess! But also a result of pressure from Sony. Evil, evil sony. I think Raimi would have had a solid Sandman based movie without the dancing and crap otherwise. Or maybe not....

first Terminator is still awsome, the Abyss is quite underrated imho, and TR is slight, but very fun with great action. And as you rightly pointed out, the dude has made two of the best sequals of all time (certainly as far as action sci-fi films go), and that is indeed no mean feat when you look at how bad/lazy/pointless/uninspired/watered down (take your pick) most sequals actually are. And for that alone Cameron deserves some respect. And are you seriously complaining about Cameron useing Michael Biehn, Sigourney Weaver, Bill Paxton many times??? Cameron happens to have one of the coolest group of character actors to ever be used many times by a director imho, and what director does nt use certain character types? Cameron certainly is nt unique in that area....

How over here in NZ, where PJ lives, we are inundated with stories every second day about how he has signed up for the Hobbit. Stories which are quickly redacted as if they have never been.<br><br>
I honestly don't see how this whole mess is going to get cleared up unless MGM sorts it's shit out. We're at risk of losing one (possibly) great Bond film *and* two (probably) great Hobbit films thanks to MGM and their dickery.<br><br>Oh, and Camerons' films are precise and perfect but for one brief, shining period in the 80's John McTiernan could do no wrong. Die Hard and Predator are both more enjoyable than anything Cameron has done, even if I love Aliens, The Abyss and both Terminator films dearly.

fucking perfectly as Cameron? What the fuck ever happened to McTiernan anyway? Is nt he in jail or something? How the fuck the guy that made Die Hard and Predator went on to make the Rollerball remake is beyond me. That film is so badly made, and amazingly the action is almost incomprhensible....

Aliens dont care for, hate the weird jarheads-in-space fascination cameron has, his movies also blend action with bits of scifi good but T2 was good except too much of the crying melodrama. T1 is a masterpiece with a unique noir/horror atmosphere. T2 had too much crying melodrama. True Lies has a boring setting. Cameron knows how to do larger-than-life action.
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Scott to this day remains to date unparalelled in fantastical visuals but then again this guy had an art background prior to film, his fantastical trilogy Alien, BR, Legend is a rarity in film and makes a joke out of the cgi age visually.
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McTiernan is a greater action director than Cameron is at his height, yes solely for Predator and Die Hard which none of Cameron's best even tops not even T1. Predator in time will only continue to gain recognition as iti s doing now to be something more, it is an ageless looking movie from a combo of different reasons and its pacing is unrivaled.

disagree dude, Aliens is the shit as far as Im concerned. As good as Die Hard, and better than Predator (which btw has a whiff of the A team to the action set piece at the rebel village imho), and im not sure why marines in space is a bad thing. Futuristic military stuff if done well as in Aliens is pretty damn cool. And at least Cameron still knows how to direct action based on the one battle scene at the end of Avatar. What the fuck is Mc Tiernans excuse for Rollerball?

Indeed. Though there's some other SF movies which i also put as highly as the holy 3 you aforementioned: those are, for me: John Carpenter's THE THING (it's also SF), GHOST IN THE SHELL and THX-1138 (older version). And i have a soft spot for ROLLERBALL (1974's version).

Indeed. My problem with the redone job on THX-1138 is that the socieity in the movie looks to be less in a bunker and more into a vast underground city. i prefer the notion that the human society is living in a claustrophobic bunker style place.<br><br>And many will probably will think what i'm going to say as weird and strange, but THX-1138 has my all-time favorite movie car chase. I love that car chase like nothing else. And it helps the cars used in the movie are adaptations of the mythical Lola. People can bash Lucas for all they want, but the man really knows about cars, and how to film them.

Totally, the car chase at the end of THX is beautifully staged and edited. I'd love Lucas to ditch the CG, get a low budget and go out and shoot something like THX again, but I guess you can never go back again.

if you hang in here long enough, i'll link you to another talkback where i tried to do a Q&A with some poster which claims to be an important big shot Hollywood player (and no, it's not JettL, so you can guess where this is going). Check out my questions and the lame replies, when he bothered to reply, were like. My final conclusion is that the guy is not who he claims to be, he's another JettL, a funnyman who thinks it's cute to pass for famous people. It does rob of some satisfaction to thrown crap at the person who is responsible for so much movie shit, but on the other hand, it fugures the real guy would never bother to show up in here, with the workload he has. Just wait for about one and half hour and i'll link ya. I saved that talkback link just for you to see.

...Harry, aren't you essentially saying that you and the lame-stream press have swapped places? Where once you were the young, struggling up-and-comer who would post wild rumors for sheer attention-getting, now that you're much more well-known and have "ins" with the insiders, you're more cautious and will/can afford to hold off on a story. Whereas the lame-stream media, in a desperate attempt to stay relevant and in business, will now publish anything, confirmed or not, to capture all the eyeballs they can.<P>
Now both approaches have their pros and cons, but here's a thought: isn't it the over-caution, bred by the desire to maintain industry insider connections (as well as the attendant ego-inflation) that made the lame-stream media moribund and unable to honestly cover the entertainment beat for fear of being shut out of the "exclusives" that they were loath to breach in the first place? The worst thing that any member of the press can do is get cozy with the object of your reportage. When that happens, whatever objectivity you may have evinced is gone for good. Just as (and really, even more so) with the government, the press needs to hold the entertainment industry at arm's length to really do it's job, and I don't care if “the press” is Entertainment Tonight, Entertainment Weekly, Daily Variety, The Insider, or even Ain't It Cool News. There's a fine line between responsible reporting and being in someone's pocket. I'm not saying you've crossed that line here, Harry, or anywhere else, just hoping you're paying attention to that line.

"The writing/producing team of Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman (“Star Trek,” “Fringe” “Transformers”) received the prestigious George Pal Memorial Award in honor of their unending imagination and dedication to creating amazing genre-bending blockbusters at the movies and on television."
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The mind boggles.

Wow, just, wow! Proof, if need be, that you can buy your way into awards.<br><br>So, TRASHFORMERS 2 is an example of "unending imagination and dedication to creating amazing genre-bending blockbusters". I have been wrong all this years, man! Thank goodness there's some award to rectify my errors.

but didn't MGM give us that crappy remastered print of 'gone with the wind' after james cameron's 'titanic' took over the world? MGM can't survive on their reputation anymore; they have to make a gamble (sorry for the casino pun, but it's true), or get lost in history. it's a fucked truth, but it's true.

... it's better we never took too much stock in that. sometimes the right movies and TV shows get them. Sometimes they don't. To this day even the Academy can't figure out why they gave the oscar for best movie to "Annie" instead of "2001: A SPACE ODDYSSEY".

but i want to go to hollywood and help some pretentious studio bureaucrats out for room and board only. it'll be like the peace corp except it would be for the future of entertainment; and it would be better than talking about 'true lies' or sending Slayer to the middle east to make peace...

Basically you want to be a Jesus. And you know what they did to the guy, don't you? They didn't covered him with gold and girls, that's for sure.<br><br>The only way i can see for soembody to do some good changes in Holywood is to be like a kubrick, a Cameron or a Nolan: be imensely talented and intelligent while making smart but audience friendly movies and be so sucessful even the studio hacks can't touch you.

true, asimovlives. that was a really confused movie; but i got a sense that Woo wanted to make an entertaining piece of historic pulp, and the studio wanted 'oscar porn'. it was a very poor example of what it means to compromise.
john woo is a chinese action director too; hired to make a movie about americans and indians defending America. i've always advocated the notion that an outside perspective is as valid as an inside perspective; but john woo only got a 40's adventure pulp novel of world war II as a child.
it's not worthless; just a little misunderstood, and untimely.

if i wanted to be jesus i wouldn't have a computer. hey, what are you doing? you're on the computer, talking. guess what, so am i. at least i can ask if there is anything i can do to help. that's the point.

You are right about Windbreakers, and stuill i have a lower opinion on it then you. That movie broke the John Woo spell for me. It realyl is a oscar grab, that movie, but i think Woo was conivent with it. The man wanted recognition as mroe then an action movie filmmmaker. However, he seems unable to shot his movies and make them as anything else but action movies. Just watch his last movie, RED CLIFF, another epic that screams "give me a fucking award already" movie, but which doesn't know if it wants to be serious history of pulp fluff, so it plays both. It's Woo trying to pull a CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON and HERO but not understanding why those two movies worked so well. And the real historuy about that battle was far more interesting then the acrobatics bullshit that Woo pulled out of his ass for that movie. And this is both true for WINDBREAKERS as it is for RED CLIFF.<br><br>I used to think highly of Woo, not anymore.

As far i can say, we can vote with our wallets. Stop going to the theaters to watch bad movies and only go for the good ones. Don't rent or buy bad movies DVd or blu-rays, and spend your money of the special edition of the good ones. Money talks.

... is to sway the opinions of the indecisives. You can't convert soembody liek a GAY FOR BAY to think differently, to renounce the errors of their ways. But you can convince some indecisive dude who's still willing to give some to bad filmmakers and bad films that he was in the path of wrong for doing so.

when you really look at john woo, he's always been loyal to pulp and entertainment. i have to correct myself on my assessment in regard to 'windtalkers', he made a film equivalent to a 1940's pulp PROPAGANDA American book. that's why 'red cliff' seems similar. there's a creative and political balance to understand.
i'm totally behind the voting with wallets thing; but i'll tell you something the messed me up a few months ago. i went with a friend to see 'hot tub time machine', you know; a totally relevant piece of art, thought provoking, controversial, john cusack was in it. looked at my ticket stub and the bitch at the box office gave me and my date tickets to 'clash of the titans 3-D'. that bitch!

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/45499<br><br>Go to the june 20th posts, and you will see the Q&A i tried to do with this guy who cllaims to be an important Holywood figure. By the end, my conclusion is that he's a fake, he's another JettL, but without the charm. Take from that what you will. Enjoy and tell me what you think.

man, i can't be deterred from my mission. we walked into 'hot tub', saw some 2-D boobs and had some laughs. my only guilt was not walking back to the box office saying 'you get that money back the other way'!

Sorry I missed that talkback, I think I was on it before boborci showed up.
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Didn't Harry confirm boborci was the real deal? His answers were pathetic, George W Bush as basis for Kirk's rebellious youth? Jesus. It speaks volumes that Orci has to come on the internet and try and defend the 'script' he came up with. Congrats for showing him up as the unimaginative hack that he is.

I never saw confirmation from Harry that "boborci" is the real deal. And he really doesn't. I mean, he's another one of those fools who mistake "you're" for "your"? I know he's an imaginative hack, but he writes for a living. Anybody who wrotes for a living knows better. Only talkbackers in here confuse "you're" for "your", and only the american ones. foreigns like myself, regardles of the grammar fuck up we do, we don't do it out of an atempt to piss on grammar but because of ignorance or becasue we are writing in a second language. Only people too complacent intheir own native language fuck up stuff like the mistake of "you're" for "your". And no writer does that either, be they an hack or a talent. So, yeah, my conviction is that "boborci" is a fake. Sometime sis almost believable, but the shit he says as orci is the kind of stuff you could find and know from any interview and newsletters.<br><br>And dspiste me " showing him up as the unimaginative hack that he is", notice how many people still went to show him their support and succour. Even people who nominatly and usually show contempt and criticism on his writing and talent. Of course, the thing becames doubly funny because they are praising a fake.

Now, not so much. If i never watch the movie ever gain, it will not bother me. I just stoped caring for it. There's other classics i'd rather spent time with watching them and looking for the DVDs/blu-rays.

I could watch all three of those movies over and over again, they are pure 80's without being cheesy 80's and i won't lie when i saw that hearing that they are coming to bluray has given me a really veiny hard on

Once a week syndicated half hour tv show based on AICN newsite..Its gold baby gold!!!...with roving reporters Capone, Quint,and Massa.
Music news updates by Yoko er.. Patricia Knowles..all tied together by the ringmaster Harry Knowles..I would watch this for sure...

oddly enough, that's another movie that I could care less about a few years ago, but when I catch it now I have a new found appreciation for the tightness of the writing. They committed to the concept and had the courage to pull it off, including in the second movie, and it's just the kind of tight screenplay you don't see much of anymore. Nearly all screenplays today are sloppy in one way or another, or are made to seem as such by the committee of producers, stars, and the director deciding they know better.

I'll weigh in on this. For me, regardless of which of the two was better in the 80's, it really comes down to this. Cameron has remained consistently good, whereas McTiernan only had a run of three great films (Die hard, Predator, Hunt for Red October)and then fizzled out. I like Die Hard 3, but it's quite sloppy compared to the precision of the first movie, with lots of choppy edits and a script which is all over the place. It was rumored that McT was locked out of the editing room in post for some reason, so maybe that's the reason. Then even in the early 90's he was doing shit like Medicine Man and Last Action Hero, so I don't think his status as an action god can legitimately have said to have continued much past 1990. Not to mention the awful 13th Warrior and junk like his Rollerball remake and Basic.<P>Now as regards Die Hard and Predator, I love both of those films but they're hardly beyond reproach, either. Die Hard is nearly perfect but that awful part at the end where the guy stupidly comes back to life and then the very corny moment when Al shoots him always bothered me, especially in a movie which presented a very logical progression of events to its story and setting,which was one its key strengths. That ending was just like something out of a bad slasher. And of course, Predator is quite cheesy and borderline camp in places, with all its macho posturing and dick-waving. Don't get me wrong, I love all that stuff, and it fits right in with the movie perfectly, but let's not criticize Cameron for corniness, as someone did above, and then selectively ignore the offending articles in those two films.<p>The other thing is that, Predator, great though it is, and to an extent Die Hard as well, don't have the depth and themes of Cameron's movies. Predator is really just a straight ahead action flick, but Aliens was a character based film, and about themes of motherhood and femininity and rife with vietnam allegories (Ripley as the traumatised survivor). It's no surprise that Weaver was nominated for best actress for this film. And Terminator and The Abyss have much more of an emotional punch that McT's films. This for me, gives Cameron's movies the edge, over and above the action content. His action films were never really JUST action films. They always had a deeper resonance, which if hardly the stuff of what snobbish cineastes would qualify as 'serious' cinema, certainly elevated his work above most of his 80's (and 90's/00's) action peers, and the majority of work in that genre.<p>In addition, there is a rumor that Cameron, as well as designing the mandibles for the creature in Predator, also did an uncredited rewrite on the script as well, and that the scene in Avatar where Jake dives into the lagoon pursued by the thanator, was a homage to the similar scene in Predator, and a wink/wink nudge to Cam's involvement. That could be bullshit, but Predator's taut storyline and great action does look like something he might have written, eh? I know for sure that he did an uncredited rewrite on one of Arnold's films as a favor, and I think that could be the one.

That is the real Bob Orci and it has been mentioned by AICN as such. Speaking of which...<P>...Orci is scheduled to be participating in some sort of Con panel with CHUD's Devin Faraci. I wonder if he will have some choice words for ol' Assimov...

giveaway that the talkback Bob Orci is a fake? We all know he's a shit writer anyway, and this probably extends to his spelling and grammar, too. Hell, have you read Tarantino's Basterds script? Dyslexic isn't the word.<P>Bob Orci, go back to college and take a refresher course in the English language!

Heroes Shed No Tears; A Better Tomorrow; A Better Tomorrow 2; Just Heroes; The Killer; Bullet in the Head; Once a Thief; Hard Boiled; Hard Target (average movie, but great action); Broken Arrow (ditto, and also responsible for the name of this site!); and Face/Off.<P>Alas, mental midget Tom Cruise broke him with Mission Impossible 2, and his enforced butchery of that film to get a PG-13 rating. Woo has never been the same since.

For taking the time to talk to your readers for more than just a few posts. We all still love this site no matter how much we bitch and dwell in nostalgia.
I hope this setback forces Peter Jackson to make only one movie, THE HOBBIT and cut that bridge movie nonsense.
And regarding Spidey. We are two reboots and one Jonah Hex away from burying Comic Book Movies. Just like what happened to Fabtasy in the 80's.

The 'Hobbit' bridge movie idea has already been scrapped (long, long ago). Del Toro and Jackson confirmed this in a Q & A session some time back (before Del Toro abandoned the project, obviously). Instead, Jackson and company will(hypothetically, at this point) be splitting the book into two separate films, 'Kill Bill' style. 'The Hobbit Volume 1' and 'The Hobbit Volume 2'.

I can buy Orci as an imaginationless writer. But a technically bad writer who constantly fucks up grammar? I don't buy that. I don't buy that at all. I despise orci as a storymaker, but that doesn't mean i'm going to start thinkign he's also a 3rd grader who can't know the difference between "your" and "you're". Bullshit! "boborci" is a fake, that's that it is.<br><br>The other argument is, if you were such an image conscious person as Roberto Orci really is, you would think you would give your detractors such ammonunitions as the posts he does in AICN regarding those who don't like him and acts like some AICN dumb illiterate talkbacker? How good would he look like among his peers and everybody who invests on his shows and movies? You think his posts wouldn't be found out? His AICN would be ambrosia to his Holylwood enemies and adversaries.<br><br>Again, i call bulslhit on the notion that "boborci" is the real Orci. No, he's not. Orci is just a bad imaginationless storyteller. "boborci" is a George W. Bush level redneck illiterate charmless idiot who mistakes dumb platitudes with wit. Orci, for all his flaws, he's not the idiot that "boborci" is. There's no compare.

The movie is filled to the teeth with great chinese actors, it has amazing production values, and it's based on a great amazing event from ancient chinese history. And yet i found the movie lacking. It's too desperate to be an epic while at the same time it wants to be a silly wuxia action movie. The two styles do not match. In fact, the wuxia shit cheappens the impact of the story. The battle of Red Cliff is a well documented fact, and not a mostly legend thing like the story of the emperor and the assassin. You cna go to town with wuxia stuff in a legendary story, but it's stupid if you do it for a true historical event. RED CLIFF is John Woo showing off, trying to return to the arena, and to compete with HERO. And in that regard, it's a whole pile of ass. Misguided is an accurate way to describe RED CLIFF.

Sorry for the really late response, but I ve just been a bit busy today. Anyway...to answer your question. Your Soccer team really thrased North Korea (or Bukhan as its known here) and for the most part peopel here were happy to see them lose so badly as there is a lot of tension between North and South Korea lately. Many teens here hate North Korea and Kim Jung Il in general....hope that answers your question..

right Asimov, that the wuxia stuff was somewhat misplaced, but the action was damn good otherwise, and you have to at least admit its a return to form when compared to the garbage he was churning out post Face Off....